"Instructor, if I turn to the ground, I will be a good-for-nothing mediocrity. Only in flying do I have my own value. How can you let me lose my only value?" Xu Cang's attitude was quite respectful at first, but when he heard these people's words deviating more and more from his own cognition, the respect in his words also decreased a bit.
Some people don't deserve his respect!
Xu Cang had a very clear understanding of himself. Off the plane, he was just an ordinary man. He had no sweet words to make girls happy, no strong body, and had to stop and slow down after running two steps. He also had no developed athletic ability. Even with the simplest dribbling, Xu Cang might not be able to dribble the ball five meters.
He doesn't know how to take care of himself, and the only dish he can cook is tomato and egg soup. He doesn't know how to fold clothes, and often just wraps up the dried clothes and throws them into the closet. He doesn't know how to sort things out, and often forgets where he puts things after a day. He also doesn't know how to clean the house, and he won't move until the house is so messy that he can't even step.
Without the plane, Xu Cang was thrown into the crowd and no one could recognize him. He could not control his emotions quickly. When he was wronged, he would feel sad, angry, and want to destroy everything.
"So your original intention of flying is to realize your own value?" Instructor Wang Baotian lamented, "How can you have such a utilitarian idea? As a pilot, shouldn't you make silent contributions?"
"Teacher, you are wrong to say that." Xu Cang suddenly laughed: "Then what is the meaning of you all coming to me now? Are you really doing this out of public interest, or are you hiding some dirty thoughts?"
Xu Cang was not good at beating around the bush, but that didn't mean he didn't understand what these people meant. If that was the case, he might as well break up with them. Anyway, Xu Cang didn't think these people were worth his time and effort to take care of their feelings.
"How dare you!" Xu Cang's words directly angered the hot-tempered instructor Xue. "You're so lucky to have dealt with a few special situations that you're so proud of yourself. When your technical level is improved in the future, won't you make a big fuss? When you came here to ask for an explanation today, I thought it was unnecessary, after all, the bureau has its own decision. But now it seems that we made the right decision this time. You are an unstable boy, are you qualified to represent the meritorious pilots?"
Teacher Wang Baotian sighed softly: "Xu Cang, you are possessed by a demon!"
"Why waste your time talking to him? The bureau is blind to think that such a man can be a meritorious pilot. We will report this to the company, no, to the General Administration, and we must ask for an explanation." Teacher Wang said sternly, "I want to see if there are any reasonable people in the bureau now."
"Xu Cang, the bureau is willing to compensate you. That's recognition of your previous achievements. Why should you reject the bureau's kindness?" Wang Baotian was still persuading: "Accepting the bureau's arrangement is good for everyone and can also appease everyone's resentment."
Xu Cang said coldly: "Teacher, do you know what it means for me to accept the arrangement of the bureau?"
"Of course I know that." Wang Baotian nodded and said, "Can't you let go of the false reputation of a meritorious pilot? Do you really want to make enemies with the older generation of pilots for this?"
Wang Baotian seemed to be speaking calmly, but in fact, he was the one who killed people. The remaining three instructors were probably just jealous because they were not awarded the title of meritorious pilot, while Wang Baotian himself was a meritorious pilot and wanted to protect his own interests.
This situation is very common in society. When someone in a certain circle suddenly makes a class leap, he may not try to help others, but instead block all channels for upward mobility for those who come later.
The scarcity of certain things makes them be given greater value. Once they become abundant, the same things you own will also depreciate, which creates a conflict of interest.
Therefore, in essence, Wang Baotian still believed that Xu Cang obtained the title of Meritorious Pilot through some illegal means and connections. Once this loophole was opened, whether the title of Meritorious Pilot could still be the highest honor for civil aviation pilots in the future was questionable.
"Teacher!" Xu Cang took a deep breath and said only seven words: "If we don't share the same ideals, we can't work together!"
Wang Baotian's drooping eyelids suddenly opened, emitting a brilliant light. He did not look like an old man at all. Teacher Xue behind him laughed out loud: "Great, great, what a crazy young man. Old Wang, they have already ordered us to leave, why are we still here? Let's go!"
"Xu Cang, you said the wrong thing." Wang Baotian sighed, looking extremely regretful: "It's a good thing for young people to be full of vigor and vitality, but it's also a truth that they are prone to failure after being too young."
Xu Cang didn't say anything, but took a step back and made way for the aisle. His meaning was obvious.
Except for Wang Baotian, the other three teachers snorted coldly and left first. Only Wang Baotian left last. Before leaving, he looked at Xu Cang with an extremely regretful expression.
However, Xu Cang's expression did not change at all, and he remained motionless.
After waiting for about half a minute, the four teachers had all left, leaving Xu Cang alone in the corridor. He did not go into the house immediately, but leaned on the railing, looking at the bright and colorful world outside.
Suddenly, Xu Cang's cell phone rang, and he picked it up and saw that it was the number of Qin Xin's secretary. Before this, he had communicated with Qin Xin's secretary many times because of business, and he recognized this number.
After calming down a bit, Xu Cang answered the call. Before Xu Cang even had time to speak, the person on the other end asked impatiently, "Someone claiming to be from the bureau just contacted me, saying that as long as you turn to the ground, you can be given a spot to set up an airline. Is that true?"
Xu Cang's pupils shrank. He didn't expect that Shi Lingling could actually find the contact information of Qin Xin's secretary and communicate directly with her.
"Yes, that's true, but..."
Before Xu Cang could finish, the secretary interrupted him and said firmly: "Promise her, Xu Cang, promise her!"
Xu Cang was startled, then said: "You didn't hear her conditions. She wants me to give up flying and go to the ground."
"So what? From what she said, even if she transfers to the ground, it is still a good position in the bureau. What's wrong with that?" The secretary urged: "Xu Cang, not many people in the head office support Miss in this Erhai base matter. It's all thanks to her. I don't know what you said to Miss to make her so convinced of you, but you must ensure that Miss will not lose too much because of this. The quota for establishing an airline is very important, very important. You persuaded Miss to invest everything for you, shouldn't you do something?"
From the beginning, the secretary was worried about one issue, which was the establishment of an airline. Anyone who knows a little about civil aviation knows how difficult it is to get a quota to establish an airline, not to mention that the airline is mainly funded by private capital.
Xu Cang always insisted that he had a way to get a quota to set up an airline, but without any evidence, the secretary would not feel worried. Even if the Erhai base did well in the early stage, if there was no quota to set up an airline, wouldn't it be a waste of time for Blue Sky Airlines?
If there is a quota to form an airline, if the development of the Erhai base is hindered, just selling this quota can make a lot of money back and avoid too much loss.
After all, the secretary just wanted to find a backup plan for Qin Xin.
"Is this what Qin Xin meant?" Xu Cang had this question almost instantly, but soon concluded: "Qin Xin doesn't know about this, right?"
Secretary: "Does it make any difference? I think the lady will agree with me."
"Of course there is a difference!" Xu Cang shouted, "Besides, Qin Xin will definitely not agree."
After saying that, Xu Cang hung up the phone.
Taking a deep breath, Xu Cang tried to calm himself down. After a long time, his heart that was about to jump out of his chest gradually calmed down. Finally, he slowly uttered a sentence: "You are all forcing me!"
…
The next morning, in the office of the general manager of the flight department of Blue Sky Airlines, Lu Jinghua yawned and returned to his office with messy hair. He was on duty last night, but it happened to be rainy in the south, and many flights of Blue Sky Airlines were delayed or diverted. Lu Jinghua stayed in the operation control center all night and did not change shifts until five or six in the morning.
He didn't even have time to go back to sleep. He went to the cafeteria to eat a little and then came back to the office. He still had some work to do, and he estimated that he could finish it in less than an hour. After finishing the work at hand, he could go back to sleep without any worries. Otherwise, there would be some things left, and he would not be able to sleep well.
If I just have to hold on for another hour, I can still barely hold on.
Walking to the door of his office with a headache, Lu Jinghua was still wondering whether he should get a little sleep before coming back, lest he stay up too long and die suddenly on the spot, which would be a big problem.
Just as he approached the office door, Lu Jinghua suddenly realized that there was a person standing at the door. The person was leaning on a dragon-headed cane, his back was slightly hunched, and his face was covered with many age spots. He looked like a candle that would go out at any time.
Lu Jinghua, who was a little drowsy at first, was immediately shocked when he saw the person standing at the door, and hurried to support him: "Mr. Xin, why are you here?"
The old man in front of you has retired, but he was the first instructor when Blue Sky Airlines was founded and the only meritorious pilot in the history of Blue Sky Airlines, Xin Zhen.
Originally, Teacher Xin had retired for many years. The company would send gifts to Teacher Xin on important holidays every year, but due to health limitations, Teacher Xin seldom came to the company building. I didn't expect him to come this morning.
Moreover, today Mr. Xin was not wearing casual clothes, but his previous captain's uniform, with six medals pinned on his chest, like a general with outstanding military achievements.
Because it was such a long time ago, Lu Jinghua couldn't even recognize all of the medals, but the Meritorious Pilot Medal in the upper left corner was shining brightly and shocking.
Perhaps Xin Zhen was really too old. He had been trying hard to support himself with a crutch, but it was already very difficult. Until Lu Jinghua came over to support him, Xin Zhen put one hand weakly on Lu Jinghua's shoulder.
"Xiao Lu, I heard that our company has seconded a kid to Shandong Airlines. He's a meritorious pilot, right?" Xin Zhen tried hard to speak clearly, but at his age, he still had to take a breath after each sentence.
Lu Jinghua was shocked and lowered his head: "Mr. Xin, there is such a co-pilot."
"So there really is one." Xin Zhen stroked Lu Jinghua's cheek with his right palm and said with difficulty, "I think he must be very sad now."
Lu Jinghua felt the rough texture of Xin Zhen's palms. These hands had held the joystick for forty-five years. He had truly dedicated his entire life to civil aviation.
For no reason, Lu Jinghua felt a pang in his heart. Suddenly, he seemed to understand the reason why Xin Zhen came over: "Mr. Xin, Xu Cang... is very sad."
Xin Zhen patted Lu Jinghua's cheek and said, "The kid is being treated unfairly outside, so bring him back."
Lu Jinghua's eyes were slightly red, and he nodded heavily: "Mr. Xin, I understand, I'll go right away."
"Well, go ahead." Xin Zhen waved his hand: "I'm old, so I'll... go back."
Xin Zhen pushed Lu Jinghua away and wanted to leave. At this time, Lu Jinghua hurriedly followed: "Mr. Xin, let me take you back first."
"No need." Xin Zhen shook his head: "You have more important things to do, go ahead."
After saying that, Xin Zhen pushed Lu Jinghua away again. This time, Lu Jinghua did not chase him. He understood Xin Zhen's persistence, which was the persistence of the older generation.
Xin Zhen didn't say much when he came over, but his words carried more weight than thousands of words.
Lu Jinghua scratched his head and did not return to his office. Instead, he took out his cell phone and called the dispatcher: "This is Lu Jinghua, arrange a flight for me to Qizhou."
…
"What did you say? A big decision!?" In the office of the general manager of Shandong Airlines' flight department, Deng Wenjia heard the news given by the general manager of the flight department in disbelief.
The general manager of the flight department was anxious. "A full 23 meritorious pilots asked the General Administration to give a reasonable explanation for the title awarded to Xu Cang. The General Administration plans to hold a meeting to collectively discuss the issue of awarding Xu Cang the title."
"Twenty-three?" Deng Wenjia was shocked. This number was almost equivalent to two-thirds of the country's meritorious pilots. Each of them was extremely experienced. The power of these people gathered together was really amazing. Even the authorities had to take it seriously. "However, there has never been a precedent in the history of domestic civil aviation to discuss the awarding of meritorious pilots twice."
Once the General Administration awards the title of Meritorious Pilot, it cannot be revoked at will unless the recipient has made extremely serious mistakes, such as engaging in illegal or criminal activities.
If it is not a matter of principle, the General Administration will basically not consider a second discussion on the rationality of meritorious pilots. This is also a manifestation of respect for meritorious pilots.
However, under strong external pressure, the General Administration actually agreed to hold a collective discussion on Xu Cang's issue, which in itself set a precedent.
"Then Xu Cang was awarded the title of meritorious pilot at the age of 25, which is also a precedent-breaking act." The general manager of the flight department also felt the pressure doubled: "It's not just the bureau, our company is also under great pressure. Those meritorious pilots put pressure on their own airlines, and then asked our company for an explanation in the name of the company. So far, seven airlines have sent us formal letters of questioning. In addition, I heard that the phone of the Civil Aviation Administration of China is about to explode. This matter is too big. The 23 meritorious pilots have come to Qizhou one after another. Let's keep a low profile today and tomorrow to avoid any problems."
"The Civil Aviation Administration of China?" Deng Wenjia sneered, "Why don't they go to the Flight Standards Department or the General Affairs Department, but dare to cause trouble for the Federation of Trade Unions? They really know the principle of bullying the weak and fearing the strong."
As we all know, even though they are all internal organizations of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the weight of each department is different. Obviously, the Civil Aviation Administration of China is a department that is relatively easy to control.
The general manager of the flight department glared at Deng Wenjia fiercely: "It's fine for you to complain to me, but you can't talk nonsense outside. Who on earth did you find to be such a great god? Most of the civil aviation community has been alarmed."
Although Shandong Airlines has developed very well recently, it is still a latecomer after all, and there are many airlines ahead of it that are stronger than it. But the commotion caused by Xu Cang this time is no less than a storm that swept across most of the civil aviation circle. For the first time, Shandong Airlines became the focus of the entire circle.
Sometimes being the center of attention is not something to celebrate. At least the general manager of the flight department feels extremely uncomfortable now.
"So what if we alarmed them? Do they think they are right?" Deng Wenjia snorted.
The general manager of the flight department quickly said, "Whether it is reasonable or not, we will have to wait until the meeting is over to find out."
Deng Wenjia was very unhappy: "What do you mean, we just ignore it?"
"Why should we intervene? How can we intervene?" the general manager of the flight department shouted, "After all, Xu Cang is just a member of Blue Sky Airlines. We don't need to stand up for him. So let's just leave it alone and not get involved. Deng Wenjia, I warn you, if you dare to bring trouble upon yourself and something goes wrong, you will be fully responsible."
Deng Wenjia shouted, "Hasn't Shandong Airlines never given up on any of its employees? Why has it changed now?"
"Then he must be an employee of Shandong Airlines. He is just seconded. How can it be the same?" The general manager of the flight department said sternly: "Don't worry about it anymore. Tomorrow, flight 9451 will carry Xu Cang and the 23 meritorious pilots to Hanjing. You should focus on this flight."
Deng Wenjia looked ashen. The words of the general manager of the flight department showed that Shandong Airlines had decided to stand aside and watch. It would be best to divert the blame and send Xu Cang and the twenty-odd meritorious pilots away as soon as possible.
"Also, let me remind you again, those twenty or so veteran pilots are all in our company, so keep your mouth shut when you are outside and don't cause trouble for the company." The general manager of the flight department wanted to get rid of this hot potato as soon as possible.
Deng Wenjia was startled and frowned: "What are they doing here?"
The general manager of the flight department was actually very annoyed: "Watch the video."
…
At this moment, in the small meeting room of the fleet office, which is usually used to listen to the cabin sound and check the simulator training video, most of the time there is no one here, but now it is crowded with people, and most of them are elderly people. These are the more than 20 meritorious pilots who gathered in Shandong Airlines mentioned by the general manager of the flight department.
At this time, the video equipment in the small conference room was playing a video of Xu Cang's initial Airbus simulator modification. The video was of high quality and had many angles, and even the main instrument displays and the details of Xu Cang's right stick control could be clearly seen.
"Xu Cang's operation on the Airbus is so fragmented, what will happen if he is on a Boeing?" One of the old teachers sneered.
This statement attracted many people to agree. Indeed, Xu Cang's manipulation techniques seemed too frequent, which was not the performance of a mature pilot.
All the people in the field were veterans who had been flying for decades. They knew the control techniques at a glance and immediately looked down on Xu Cang, a meritorious pilot who was only 25 years old.
Someone else laughed and said, "If this can be considered a meritorious pilot, then the people in the bureau are blind. The students I have trained are probably more skilled than him."
"Instructor Cheng is right. Any modification student with better talent would not have such fragmented techniques." A short old instructor laughed and said, "Instructor Wang Baotian told me about a 25-year-old meritorious pilot. I thought this kid was some kind of genius, but it seems he is just a name for nothing. He is not a genius, and I am afraid he is not even at the average level. Our joint protest seems to be quite reasonable. When we arrive in Hanjing tomorrow, we must go to the General Administration to have a good talk."
The old teacher's words revealed a piece of information, that is, this group of people were actually connected by Teacher Wang Baotian, who had previously contacted Xu Cang privately.
"But I heard that in the 9811 incident, this little guy brought down the 747 by relying entirely on blind flying. He shouldn't be the one who gets the reputation for nothing. Moreover, the evaluation of meritorious pilots has to go through layers of review. How could this be tampered with?" Not everyone was questioning Xu Cang. After all, if Xu Cang was really a fool, it would be very easy to be discovered.
Being a pilot is a thoroughgoing technical job. If you fly well, you fly well. There is no room for evasion. If you want to be rated as a meritorious pilot, technology is definitely not the first factor, but at least you should not have any technical defects. The level shown by Xu Cang in the video is indeed too far away.
No matter how biased the bureau is, they wouldn't promote someone who is a complete idiot and cannot be fully disguised.
However, there are still only a few people who are sober. When the 9811 incident was mentioned, someone took the opportunity to raise a rebuttal: "Teacher Ning, you are taking things for granted. In the 9811 incident, whether that guy was really deaf and blind is up to him to say."
"But, I have read the medical report afterwards. At that time, his eyes were bleeding profusely due to the pressure release from the explosion, so he could not see. Even if he could see, he could only perceive the faint changes in light intensity. Later, it was found that his eardrum was perforated, which is also a fact. He could not hear at that time. Don't refute me. These are written in the medical report attached to the subsequent investigation report of the bureau. It can't be wrong?" Instructor Ning continued: "We have doubts about his title of meritorious pilot at the age of 25. If you have doubts, go and ask the General Administration. Don't make conclusions for others in advance. This is not good."
Teacher Ning rarely spoke fair words, which made the teachers who had previously belittled Xu Cang embarrassed. They did not dare to refute the investigation report of 9811. If they denied the final investigation report of the bureau, it would be equivalent to denying the entire bureau, which would be much more serious.
"Then Teacher Ning, what do you think of his technique? Isn't it a complete layman's technique?" Someone brought up Xu Cang's manipulation technique again, and this made Teacher Ning not know how to answer, because Xu Cang's manipulation technique was indeed a bit amateurish.
"This is you, let's see it for ourselves."
"Is this what you call seeing is believing?" Suddenly, someone came in from outside. It turned out to be Instructor Shi Qi. As soon as he came in, he pointed at the screen in front of everyone and said, "When he was flying this simulator, there was a problem with the simulator. It seemed that the center of gravity was unstable, so he had to make corrections all the time."
Shi Qi's words did not cause everyone to think first, but someone asked about Shi Qi's identity.
"Who are you?" someone asked, "Oh, that's not right! Aren't you the inspector sitting in the back?"
Shi Qi nodded: "I was there at the time, and I can testify for Xu Cang that there was a problem with the simulator at the time."
"Forget it now." The man laughed disdainfully, "You have never fulfilled your responsibilities as an inspector and even let the trainees operate the control console. Do you still have the right to speak?"
At that time, Shi Qi knew Xu Cang's identity. Naturally, he would not associate Xu Cang's identity with this talented pilot who was able to handle the 9811 incident. To be honest, the so-called inspection was just a formality, so Shi Qi's performance at that time seemed too lazy.
"Teachers, I admit that I made mistakes during this inspection, but this has nothing to do with Xu Cang. If you need it, you can ask for the simulator's fault record book. According to the time, you should be able to find the fault record to prove that what I said is true."
"Even if there are some problems, I don't think they're big."
"No, I tried it later, and the center of gravity was very unstable. Even I found it a bit tricky. Xu Cang's control method was not his original intention, but was caused by objective reasons such as a simulator failure." Shi Qi was still trying to explain the problem with Xu Cang's control method.
But someone asked a heart-piercing question: "If the problem was so serious, why didn't he bring it up, but continued flying? You are an inspector and a C instructor, right? He was so confident that he could fix a fault that you thought was difficult to fix. What you meant was that you were no better than a second co-pilot?"
Shi Qi took a deep breath and then said in a serious tone: "From a technical point of view, I am indeed not as good as him."
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole place fell silent. Perhaps those people had never expected that Shi Qi, a teacher, would publicly admit that he was not as good as a second co-pilot. For a moment, they didn't know how to react.
After a long while, someone sneered and said, "Category C instructor is the highest technical level in civil aviation, but you actually think you are not as good as a first-class co-pilot. You are simply insulting this profession."
"No, there are some things you may not know. I think you should take a look." After saying that, Shi Qi took out a USB card reader: "There are some things that Xu Cang has recently done in Yu..."
In order to truly understand Xu Cang, Shi Qi asked his good friend in the bureau to dig out all the information about Xu Cang yesterday, including a lot of information that has not been made public. Then he saw the video of Xu Cang landing at Yulong Airport.
In that one-minute video, he believed that any flight crew member who watched it would be impressed by Xu Cangchao's superb skills.
To recover from a spiral and then land with a stick shaker at an ultra-low speed is no longer just flight control, but pure artistic enjoyment, a realm that they dare not even imagine.
He believed that as long as the meritorious pilots who were going to protest to the General Administration saw this video, they would change their prejudice against Xu Cang. The more skilled people were, the more they could feel Xu Cang's ability after watching the video.
However, he only said the word "jade" and didn't even say the word "dragon". An old man in the crowd who looked energetic suddenly opened his half-drooped eyelids, his eyes flashed, and he took a step forward and snatched the card reader from Shi Qi's hand, then shouted coldly: "Stop talking nonsense here."
After the card reader was taken away, several old teachers impatiently drove Shi Qi away: "Young man, this is not the place for you to be. Get out."
Although Shi Qi is almost fifty years old, in the eyes of these people, he is just a young man, and there is a generation gap between them.
However, Shi Qi reacted immediately and looked at the old teacher who had taken his card reader and the people who had driven him away in disbelief: "You...you all actually know?"
Since Shi Qi came in, these people have many negative opinions about Shi Qi, but no one can drive him away. However, as soon as Shi Qi mentioned Yulong Airport, they not only snatched the card reader directly, but also began to bluntly ask Shi Qi to leave.
"I don't know what you are talking about!" The old teacher who took the card reader glared and shouted fiercely: "Get lost!"
Shi Qi was filled with grief: "So you all really knew it!"
Then, his teeth were about to break, and just as he was about to speak, he was suddenly pulled by someone from behind. When he turned around, he saw that it was his daughter Shi Lingling.
"Let's go!" Shi Lingling half lowered her head and pulled Shi Qi to go out.
However, Shi Qi directly broke away from Shi Lingling's grip, and before leaving the small meeting room, he fiercely spat into it and yelled, "A bunch of bastards!"
When Shi Qi was dragged out of the fleet office by Shi Lingling, Shi Qi immediately shook off Shi Lingling's hold. He angrily asked, "Did you get these people here?"
"No!" Shi Lingling shook her head: "As far as I know, the news spread from your company, and I didn't want it to develop like this."
This statement is indeed true. Now things have become a bit serious. A group of meritorious pilots are going to protest jointly to the General Administration, which is causing the General Administration a huge headache. The most important thing is that it has lost the face of the General Administration.
Shi Lingling was from the General Administration, so she naturally didn't want to see such a situation. However, since it had already happened, it would be a good idea to let Xu Cang face the reality.
"That group of people gained an honorary status and began to exclude others. Xu Cang was awarded the Meritorious Pilot. I believe the bureau will definitely not have any selfish motives. What happened to the landing at Yulong Airport?"
To be honest, if Shi Qi had not deliberately contacted his friends in the General Administration, Xu Cang's stunning fall at Yulong Airport would not have caused even a splash, which was quite strange.
Logically speaking, the civil aviation community is very small, and any disturbance would have spread far and wide. There was no news at all about such a big incident, and the only one with the ability to block it was the General Administration. But why did the General Administration do this?
Shi Lingling pursed her lips, and it was obvious that she was also hesitating whether to tell her father the truth. Finally, she said, "Do you remember the Yulong earthquake some time ago?"
"Yulong Earthquake?" Shi Qi frowned, and instinctively sensed a connection: "What do you mean?"
"The earthquake cracked the Yulong Dam, and there was a lack of large-scale repair equipment. The evacuation road in the Yulong area also collapsed." Shi Lingling's eyes were a little evasive: "In the end, it was Xu Cang who transported the equipment to Yulong. Just based on the handling of special situations such as 9811, the bureau would never award the honor of meritorious pilot to a 25-year-old co-pilot. His medal was earned... by saving the lives of millions of people in Yulong."
Shi Qi's pupils trembled violently. He never expected that Xu Cang, a seemingly ordinary young man, could accomplish such a feat. Taking a deep breath, Shi Qi suppressed his anger and asked, "Why do you treat him like this?"
"How did I treat him? Yes, I stopped him from flying, but am I being unfair to him? From the regional administration to the general administration, we have paved the way for him, and I even promised him a quota to set up an airline. Which of these two conditions is not unprecedented?" Shi Lingling seemed to be getting emotional: "After all, we never deny Xu Cang's ability and achievements, so we gave him so much compensation. Is flying really that important?"
"Since you agree with him, you should respect his wishes instead of making choices for him."
Shi Lingling gritted her teeth and said, "The matter of Yulong Airport cannot be made public for some reasons, but it does not mean that it will not be made public in the future. When it is made public, how much role model will Xu Cang's existence play? If he is still flying at that time, how many pilots will follow his way of doing things? I said a long time ago that pilots are human beings, not gods. Human power will eventually be exhausted. We cannot let pilots handle all faults and special situations. This is an extremely wrong concept. The future of civil aviation should be that everyone has their own duties, from maintenance to administrative management to front-line pilots. They don't have to do a great job, just like workers on an assembly line, they just need to complete their own tasks according to the regulations."
Shi Qi covered his forehead, and the topic turned to the difference in their ideas about the future development of civil aviation. Shi Qi was tired of this issue and didn't want to continue discussing it.
He said weakly, "Lingling, do you think Xu Cang can keep his title of meritorious pilot when he goes to Hanjing this time?"
Shi Lingling sighed: "Dad, you should know that politics is...compromise."
…
At this moment, a very fierce quarrel was breaking out in a room in the Civil Aviation Administration office building in Hanjing, thousands of miles away.
In this small office gathered Lian Zhili, director of the General Administration's Policy and Regulations Department, Li Lin, director of the Aviation Safety Department, Sheng Gaoliang from the Aircraft Certification Department, and Di Qingquan, chief pilot. The source of the quarrel was that Chen Xiangdong pointed at Lian Zhili's nose and cursed him.
Lian Zhili was scolded unilaterally at first, but after a long time, he may have felt annoyed and shouted at Chen Xiangdong: "Old Chen, what's the point of yelling at me? The Civil Aviation Newspaper is managed by the Education and Publicity Center, and published by the newspaper publishing house. Our Policy and Regulations Department is a collaborative department. If you want to cause trouble for someone, you should first find the director of the Education and Publicity Center, and then the editor-in-chief of the newspaper publishing house. Why are you pointing your finger at my Policy and Regulations Department?"
"You guys didn't really participate much in the official newspaper, but your department was responsible for the final verification. If you could have stopped the article, why would there be so much trouble?"
The Policy and Regulations Department does not participate much in the writing and publication of the official newspaper, but because the official newspaper is an official publication, it must be sent to the Policy and Regulations Department for final proofreading before issuance to prevent any misunderstanding or interpretation of the bureau's policies.
Therefore, the Policy and Regulations Department has a veto over the official newspaper.
"Old Chen, you..." Lian Zhili was speechless for a moment. What Chen Xiangdong said did make sense, but he was not an iron man. The Policy and Regulations Department already had a mountain of work to do. As for the proofreading and review of the official newspaper, Lian Zhili certainly could not check every issue in detail. Sometimes he had to hand it over to his subordinates, and the most recent issue had not passed through his hands.
Lian Zhili knew that the latest issue of the official newspaper had done great harm to Chen Xiangdong's only disciple. Knowing that he was in the wrong, he was scolded by Chen Xiangdong for more than half an hour, but he did not say a word in reply.
But even a clay man has temper. He can't just be scolded by Chen Xiangdong all the time, right?
"Okay, Lao Chen! I know you are angry, but don't just take it out on Lao Lian. He didn't think things would turn out like this." Li Lin advised.
During the day, the General Administration decided to respond to the joint protest of 23 meritorious pilots by agreeing to conduct an arbitration decision in the Arbitration Court to re-examine the legitimacy of Xu Cang's title of meritorious pilot.
Chen Xiangdong took a deep breath and calmed down his inner turmoil. "Old Lian, is there any precedent in the history of our civil aviation for reviewing the qualifications of meritorious pilots? Regardless of the final outcome of this matter, Xu Cang has suffered a great injustice, and I, as his master, am powerless to do anything. I feel uncomfortable too."
Chief Pilot Di Qingquan, who has a good relationship with Xu Cang, also advised Chen Xiangdong: "Old Chen, the domestic civil aviation market will be liberalized soon. No one knows what it will be like after the liberalization. No one is sure. Some young people in the bureau have returned from studying abroad. It is understandable that the higher-ups want them to try out the mature experience abroad."
As Di Qingquan said, once the civil aviation market is liberalized, its scale will expand explosively. The General Administration is under great pressure for this exponential development, and it is not sure whether it can continue to effectively manage domestic civil aviation. After all, the General Administration has no experience in managing a super-large civil aviation market, so in the absence of experience, it naturally hopes to learn from the management experience of mature foreign civil aviation markets.
Some young management cadres who returned from studying abroad began to reform civil aviation. Shi Lingling was a practitioner of the reform concept.
"If they want to try, let them try." Chen Xiangdong stopped scolding Lian Zhili and calmed down instead. However, this calmness gave people a strange feeling.
Di Qingquan noticed that Chen Xiangdong was not in a good state, his eyelids twitched, and he asked carefully: "Old Chen, what are your plans?"
"What are you planning? My apprentice has been wronged, so how can I, as a master, stay here?"
Lian Zhili was horrified: "You want to leave! Lao Chen, don't be impulsive. You are old now, and you have one last chance to move up. If you leave now, you will have no chance to move up any further."
"One step further?" Chen Xiangdong sneered, "Let them play with their birds. I don't care."
…
At the same time, in the first-class cabin of a 330 plane waiting to take off at Qizhou Airport, Li Rongcheng and Ye Xian were sitting together. Ye Xian kept clapping and laughing, while Li Rongcheng next to him had a rather strange expression on his face.
"So, I said from the beginning that there is something wrong with this country. Even a person like Xu Cang can be ostracized. The ability to fight among the insiders is really unique. Hahaha!" Ye Xian laughed so hard that he fell forward. He hadn't laughed so heartily for a long time. Of course, he hadn't heard such a ridiculous thing for a long time.
This time, Li Rongcheng was going to fly to Airbus' European headquarters to discuss the price reduction. However, before taking off, he received news that Xu Cang had received a second review from the Civil Aviation Administration, and Ye Xian, who also learned the news, laughed perhaps the most unbridled laugh in his life.
Ye Xian laughed so hard that tears came out. He patted Li Rongcheng on the shoulder and said, "You are right. Even if we give them the blueprints of the 737NG, they will just waste it in internal friction. Li Rongcheng, I can only say that you understand their nature very well."
Li Rongcheng's face flashed with displeasure, and he ignored Ye Xian's words. Instead, he took out his mobile phone, thought about it, and called Xu Cang. However, after one ring, he hung up on Xu Cang directly, and the call could not be connected at all.
Li Rongcheng thought about it, edited a text message and sent it to Xu Cang.
Ye Xian saw Li Rongcheng's action and raised his eyelids: "Why, did you call Xu Cang? Do you want to take this opportunity to dig him out completely?"
"No!" Li Rongcheng shook his head.
"Huh? Turns out it's not!" Ye Xian was quite curious: "Then what do you want to do?"
Li Rongcheng fiddled with his phone: "Do you think... is our country's nationality attractive to him?"
Ye Xian was stunned when he heard this, and then he said uncertainly: "You want him to immigrate? Not a green card, but a nationality? This doesn't seem to be easy to do, right?"
Li Rongcheng rolled his eyes: "In our country, as long as you have money, what is difficult to do?"
"That's right!" Ye Xian did not refute, but smiled even more brightly: "I think this is feasible. This country is indeed not worthy of a talent like Xu Cang!"
…
At the railing on the fourth floor of a residential building in Longcheng Community, Xu Cang had just hung up the phone with Li Rongcheng, but soon he received a text message from Li Rongcheng.
Xu Cang took a quick glance, a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, then he turned off the screen of his phone and put it back in his pocket.
"Is someone looking for you again?" Qin Xin, who was beside Xu Cang, saw Xu Cang looking at his phone and asked casually.
That’s right, today, Qin Xin flew directly from Jianchuan to Qizhou and met Xu Cang in person.
"Yeah, I saw something interesting." Xu Cang turned slightly and said, "It must be hard for you to come all the way from Jianchuan."
However, Qin Xin did not answer Xu Cang directly, but asked anxiously: "Did my secretary take the initiative to talk to you about the quota for setting up an airline? Xu Cang, that was her own decision, you should not be affected. Yes, I really want a quota for setting up an airline, but I definitely don't want you to exchange it for something."
Qin Xin learned that her secretary had discussed the airline quota with Xu Cang without his permission. She was not an insider, but she could get a glimpse of Xu Cang's situation just from the article in the official newspaper.
She didn't want Xu Cang to misunderstand, so she didn't call him. Instead, she flew over from Jianchuan in person to explain things to Xu Cang in person.
"Yeah, I know." Xu Cang didn't say much, but pointed to the night sky: "Let's count the stars and see how many we can count."
Qin Xin stared blankly at Xu Cang's profile, which was holding a hint of a smile, and suddenly her mood calmed down. She did not explain anymore, but looked at the starry sky in the direction Xu Cang pointed.
From then on, the two stood side by side in silence, as if the scene was frozen in an instant. After an unknown amount of time, Xu Cang suddenly asked, "How many did you count?"
"Three hundred and twenty-four." Qin Xin said.
"It seems that your heart is still not calm enough. I counted one thousand four hundred and forty-one." Xu Cang chuckled.
"Well, I messed up once and started over again." Qin Xin said, "Xu Cang, I read the official report. You can't really believe what it says."
Xu Cang took a deep breath of the cool night air. With a hint of coolness, Xu Cang felt the night wind passing through his lungs, and his mind gradually became clear: "She said there is no place for me in the new era. I believed it for a brief moment."
The reason why Xu Cang was persuaded by Shi Lingling was because the concept described by Shi Lingling was completely in line with the future governance concept of domestic civil aviation.
"But now, I don't have any doubts." Xu Cang said firmly: "Will I be abandoned by the new era? No, she can't say that!"
Qin Xin saw Xu Cang's expression and suddenly felt relieved. She smiled and asked, "Why do you say that?"
Xu Cang raised his chin slightly, his eyes not wavering at all: "Because I am the new era itself."
…
At 5:30 in the morning, an Airbus 320 was parked at a parking space at Qizhou Airport. Soon, this Airbus 320 would fly to Hanjing on flight 9451.
In the cockpit, the maintenance man was discussing with his colleagues the problem of different engine flow displays on both sides of the aircraft.
"We have flown for three days since the last maintenance. Three crews have reported that the fuel flow on both sides is different. What should we do?" The maintenance man's brows were almost twisted into knots. This was the first time he encountered such a tangled situation. "I have read the records of the last maintenance, and they were all in accordance with the standards, but I still can't find the problem."
The colleague was obviously also encountering this situation for the first time. He scratched his head and said, "Didn't we consult the Airbus technical department before? What did they say?"
"They said that as long as the standard inspection items are carried out and everything is normal, then there is no problem. The simple flow difference is acceptable."
"Oh, I see." If an airline or maintenance department encounters some difficult problems, they will often choose to consult directly with the technical department of Airbus or Boeing. After all, the aircraft is designed by them, so their understanding must be much deeper.
"In that case, let's release it normally." My colleague also felt that what Airbus' technical department said made sense. When the aircraft is older, some non-fault problems are prone to occur. For example, under the same thrust, the thrust handles on both sides are not consistent. This is not a fault, but a simple aging problem.
The maintenance officer nodded. The Airbus technical department was still very authoritative: "Okay, then let's release it normally. However, I still have to report to the higher-ups later, and the D inspection of this aircraft can be brought forward appropriately."
"Yeah, I think it's necessary too." My colleague said, "After you sign, go to the cabin and rest for a while. The flight is early, so I don't think you can take a nap for long."
As expected, about half an hour later, two infield cars drove under the covered bridge first. The doors opened, and a group of gray-haired old men got out one after another. These people were the co-signers who were going to Hanjing to protest.
After all these people got off, Xu Cang was the last to get off. This time he also wanted to go. After Xu Cang got off, the crew on duty also got off. They were Shi Qi and Wu Taiming.
Before this, they had a flight with the same plane and the same passengers, but something happened to Xu Cang, so the flight had to be cancelled.
Unexpectedly, a few days later, they met again on the same plane. I wonder if it was fate.
More than 20 veteran instructors in front went up the side ladder of the corridor bridge. Shi Qi did not go up immediately. Instead, he took out a reflective vest from the flight box and planned to do a walk-around inspection first.
Xu Cang was wearing casual clothes and carrying a bag, looking very relaxed. Just as he was about to go up the side ladder, Shi Qi called Xu Cang: "Xu Cang, are you okay?"
Xu Cang didn't know much about Shi Qi, but he instinctively had a good impression of him. He nodded, didn't say much, and then went up the stairs.
Originally, Wu Taiming should have gone up to prepare the cockpit at this time, but he felt that the aura of the 23 meritorious pilots was too strong, so he did not dare to go up alone, so he also took out his reflective vest and planned to follow Shi Qi to do a round-the-plane inspection and then go up together.
Shi Qi saw Xu Cang go up and headed for the bottom of the plane. When he realized Wu Taiming had followed him, he asked curiously, "What are you doing here?"
Wu Taiming pointed at the plane and said, "Those people on it look a little scary."
"Scary?" Shi Qi was stunned for a moment, but soon realized that Wu Taiming was talking about those meritorious pilots. He smiled and said, "Scary, right? I think it's scary too."
After saying this, he ignored Wu Taiming and walked towards the nose of the plane. Wu Taiming followed Shi Qi obediently, with complicated thoughts in his mind.
When the two men walked near the No. 1 engine, Wu Taiming suddenly noticed a pool of water under the engine, so he trotted to Shi Qi and was about to ask if there was any problem.
Shi Qi squatted down, shone his flashlight at the puddle of water under the engine, and muttered, "It looks like dew."
However, Shi Qi did not jump to any conclusion. He stretched out his hand and dipped a finger in it, then put it to his nose and sniffed it. He could not smell any strange smell at all: "Hmm, it's really dew!"
"Oh, dew!" Wu Tai understood clearly. This situation is quite common. When enough dew accumulates on the engine cowling, it will flow down the outer shell and form a small pool of water right below the engine.
"It's been very humid these days, so it's normal for some dew to accumulate at night." Shi Qi stood up, stretched his limbs, and then put down the engine, and Wu Taiming quickly followed.
But soon after Shi Qi and the others left, a little liquid dripped onto the engine casing above the pool. This time, it was no longer transparent water, but slightly yellow!